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quail¹

(kwāl)

n. pl. quail or quails

1. Any of various primarily ground-dwelling birds of the genus Coturnix, especially C. coturnix, small in size and having mottled brown plumage and a short tail. Also called coturnix.

2. Any of various similar or related birds of the Americas, such as the bobwhite or the California quail.

[Middle English quaile, from Anglo-Norman, from Vulgar Latin *quaccula (attested in Medieval Latin as quaccola), of imitative origin.]

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quail¹

male California quail

Callipepla californica

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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